Improvement in cultivators



W. KIDDOO. I

Cultivator.

Patented Oct. 30,1866.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM KIDDoo, or KEITHSBURG, ILLINOIS.

IM PROVEMENT IN CULTIVATORS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 59,231, dated October 30, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM KIDDoo, of

Keithsburg, in the county of Mercer and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Im provement in Cultivators; and I do hereby declare the followin g to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of my machine, the near wheel being removed. Fig. 2 is a plan view of my machine. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the same.

My invention consists, first, in raising and lowering the plows or shovels without changing the horizontality of the plow-beam; second, in the adj ustin g-gage, by whichthe shovels and shields are setat any desired width 5 third, in making the shields so that they can be raised or lowered independent of the plows;

fourth, in the manner of attaching the plowbcam to the frame; fifth, beveling the shanks to which the shovels are attached, so as to dispense with the customary blocking out.

That others may understand my invention, I will particularly describe it.

The main frame A is mounted upon an elevated axle, so as to be considerably above the centers of the bearing-wheels, so as to straddle the rows of corn and pass over them in safety. Upon a board or cross-bar at the rear end of the main frame is the drivers seat B. The drivers feet rest upon the plow-beams, which are moved from side to side thereby, as required, to clear the standing corn, and still to cut sufficiently close to it. Convenient to the drivers hand are levers for raising or lowering the plows on either side, and also a device by means of which the distance between the two sets of plows may be increased or di minished at pleasure. These devices I will now describe.

Upon the main frame A, a little back of the axle, is mounted the transverse frame (J. Near the upper corners of this frame 0 are placed the pulley-sheaves D D, over which cords E E pass. These cords are attached at one end of each of the plow-beams F, so that by drawing down upon either cord the plow-beam will be elevated, or vice versa. One end of each cord D being attached to a plow-beam, the other end is attached to a lever, G G, through the medium of which the attendant draws or relaxes the cords E. The levers G G are pivoted to the standards H H, and at their front ends they are connected to the front ends of the plow-beams F by links I I. The pivot connecting the standards H and the lever G is exactly midway between the points of connection of the cord E and the link I, so that as the rear end of the lever G is depressed the front end of the lever and the frontend of plow-beam are both raised by direct action, and at the;

same time the cord E is drawn over the pulley D, and the rear end of the plow-beam F is raised to exactly the same extent. Thus the beam of the plow is always maintained in the same horizontal position. The spring-latches J J engage in notches in the frame (I, or in pieces, of any suitable material, set up alongside of said frame, to that the shovels may be raised, lowered, or retained in any desired position.

At the front end of the frame A are the two depending guides and draft-barsK K. They are supported by the braces L L, which extend from their lower ends forward and upward to the front cross-bar of the main frame. The friction-roller M, at the front end of each plow-beam, rests against the forward side of the bar K, and enables the attendant to raise and lower-the plow-beam with little hindrance on account of friction against the said bar. As the bar K forms the only connection between the plow-beam and the main frame at I its forward end, it must be sufficiently strong to bear all the strain of the draft when brought against the lowest end when the plows are inserted the deepest.

Suspended from the frame 0 is the swing in g frame N, the lower portion of which is composed of two plates, 0 O, which slide past each other, guided by a pin and slot in each, as shown in Fig. 2. The relative positions of these two plates determines the breadth of the lower part of the frame N, and these relative positions are determined and controlled by the lever P and link Q, the lever being pivoted to the one part and the link to the other, while the lever and link are connected at alittle distance from the point where the lever is pivoted to the plate. By this arrangement, as the lever is moved one way or the other, the side pieces of the frame are drawn nearer together or pushed farther apart, as the case may be. The lever may be retained at any point by dropping into one of a series of notches in an are, R, which is placed there for that purpose.

The guide-rods S S are attached to the plowbeams, and pass from thence upward through holes in the plates 0 O, and through holes in the lugs I I, at the upper corners of the suspended frame N N These guide-rods keep the plow-beams in their proper places horizontally, and still permit them to rise and fall in obedience to the movements of the levers G G.

The shields U U are intended to prevent the fall of heavy clods upon or against the stalks of young corn or other plants that are being cultivated, as well as to prevent the injury of' the plants by the shovels.

The shields U are suspended from the frame N by rods Vfwhich pass through lugs or portions of the plates 0 O, and their height is regulated by screw-nuts or equivalent means above said plates. They are drawn forward by dragbars \V, which attach them to the forward end of the main franie'A. The braces X X, through which the rods Vpass freely, serve to maintain the shields at a proper distance from the plows, and permit the latter to rise and fall without in any way affecting the position of the shields.

The plows or shovels Y Y are of any desirable or proper form. They are set upon shanks, and properly braced to the beam. The upper ends of the shanks Z Z are beveled, as shown in Fig. 3, so that the plow is set angling outward, or spread a 1ittle,.as is usually deemed desirable. By bevelin g the shank in this way a close connection with the plow-beam is made,

and no blocks required to give the desired angle to the shank.

The principal advantage of my invention consists in maintaining the plows always at the proper angle and draft by keeping the plowbeam always level. Other advantage is found in the modes and variety of adjustment.

Having described myinvention, what Iclaim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

1. The plow-beams F, in combination with the levers .G, or equivalent means, for raising and lowering the plow-beam without changing its horizontality.

2. The combination of the plow-beam F, 1ever G, cord E, and link I, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination of the plow-beam F and draftbar K, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. The combination of the plow beam F, draft-rod K, and guide-rod S, for the purpose of retaining the said beam in proper horizontal position.

5. The adjustable suspended frame N, provided with the lever P and link Q, or their equivalents, for the purpose set forth.

6. The shield U, suspended by the rods V. so that the plows may be raised or lowered without affecting the height of the shields.

7. The levers G and P and their attachments, substantially as described, so as to enable the attendant to adjust the plows vertically or horizontally without leaving his seat.

WILLIAM KIDDOO.

Vitnesses James EDGAR, A. SHERER. 

